Every Sunday, we cut through the noise to spotlight the NFL's most important developments and break down why they matter moving forward.
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Sunday night spotlight
Packers in great shape after stumbling out of the gates
The Packers' 23-13 win against the Cowboys wasn't the smoothest operation. Christian Watson and Matthew Golden each dropped touchdown passes that would've put the game well out of reach; the Cowboys were an inch away from a pick-6; and multiple Green Bay penalties extended Dallas drives.
Nevertheless, the Packers got their third straight win and improved to 4-2 this season. That's a pretty good spot for a Green Bay team with plenty of room to catch fire in the back half of the season.
The Packers' run game, which has been one of the league's least effective, is expected to have three-time Pro Bowl running back Josh Jacobs back in the lineup this week. And the pass rush will get a shot in the arm whenever Micah Parsons returns to action - likely next month.
Meanwhile, Jordan Love is getting more comfortable, Golden has emerged as a dangerous deep threat after finishing his rookie season without a single touchdown, and the Packers' defense has 10 takeaways in the last three weeks.
Green Bay's 1-2 start to the season - which included a blowout loss to the Falcons at home - feels like a distant memory.
Late slate
Cardinals won with FGs against kicker-less Rams
Arizona drove into the red zone five times and couldn't score a touchdown. However, five short field goals from Chad Ryland and a 43-yarder as time expired were enough to get the job done, especially when Los Angeles couldn't kick field goals of their own.
After hitting a 44-yarder to put the Rams up 3-0 in the first quarter, newly added Blake Grupe made the mistake of trying to make a tackle on the ensuing kickoff. The 156-pound kicker was promptly trucked and sent flying by Cardinals returner Devin Duvernay. Grupe suffered a knee injury that ended his day.
Without a kicker, the Rams unsuccessfully went for two after a second-quarter touchdown and turned the ball over on downs twice in Cardinals territory.
Grupe' absence wasn't the only issue for the Rams. Sean McVay's team finished with a season-low 286 yards of offense and couldn't stop Arizona from driving into field-goal range for the game-winner, which wasted a successful extra point from punter Ethan Evans that put the Rams up one point in the final minute.
Bills' offense dragging defense to wins
Buffalo is 5-1 and sitting atop the AFC East thanks to an offense that's scoring a league-leading 32.8 points per game. That's been enough to overcome a defense that gives up 28.5 points - the fifth most in the NFL.
It was the same story in Las Vegas, where Josh Allen did a little of his trademark magic to lead his team to a 33-30 win. The Raiders didn't go quietly, as Kirk Cousins connected with Tre Tucker for a 44-yard touchdown in the final minutes to give the team one last chance. But it wasn't enough.
Can the Bills keep this up?
Last year, Buffalo finished fourth in points scored but turned the ball over five times in a 33-30 loss to the Broncos in the playoffs. If the Bills' defense doesn't make drastic improvements, Allen and Co. will need mistake-free play offensively to keep getting wins.
Walker erasing Chiefs' WR problem
Kansas City recently lost Tyquan Thornton to a potentially season-ending ankle injury and was without Rashee Rice against the Chargers. Those absences didn't matter at all in a 22-6 victory.
The solution for those receiving issues for the Chiefs has been running back Kenneth Walker, who racked up 128 yards and two rushing touchdowns on only 19 carries Sunday. Kansas City's unstoppable run game is a huge reason why 37-year-old Travis Kelce is managing to put up his best numbers in years, and Patrick Mahomes is practically a shoo-in for the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award.
Of course, it helped that the Chiefs faced the Chargers, living proof of Murphy's Law, who couldn't score a touchdown against Kansas City. Regardless, the Chiefs are well set up to grind more teams to dust if Walker keeps playing at this level.
Early slate
It's J.J. McCarthy time for Giants
When Jameis Winston was benched against the New Orleans Saints, the New York Giants trailed 34-10 with less than 12 minutes left. For all intents and purposes, McCarthy's entrance into the game was more of an opportunity to give him reps in garbage time rather than any kind of legitimate effort to jump-start the offense and get back in the game.
That changed in a hurry, though.
McCarthy almost pulled off the impossible, racking up 243 passing yards on 11 completions in his relatively brief time at the reins. He sparked the Giants, who went on to score 17 points in the fourth quarter and force multiple three-and-outs on defense to set up a chance at a game-tying touchdown drive. McCarthy came up 14 yards short, as one last throw in the final seconds went off the fingertips of tight end Isaiah Likely in the back of the end zone.
The Giants, who relegated Cam Skattebo to the doghouse and didn't give him a single offensive touch, have been searching for answers offensively, and John Harbaugh hasn't been afraid to mix things up. It's hard to imagine Winston will be getting the keys back after McCarthy's prolific relief performance.
The Bears are hard to get off the field
Chicago was destined for a blowout win against Atlanta before things suddenly got a little uncomfortable. The Falcons caught fire late and scored a couple of touchdowns with a pair of successful two-point conversions to turn a 31-7 deficit into a one-score game.
Ultimately, however, the Falcons ran out of time and lost 31-23. That's not unusual against the Bears.
Ben Johnson's outfit entered the weekend with an NFL-leading 35:15 average possession time per game. The Bears added to that total by controlling the football for 40:08 against the Falcons.
With Caleb Williams back in the starting lineup, Chicago converted nine third downs, had only six incomplete passes, and ran 73 plays (against the Falcons' 50). That kind of efficiency leaves a pretty small margin for error for Chicago's opponents.
The Browns are back on top of the AFC North
It looked like Cleveland had turned back into a pumpkin in the first half of Sunday's game against Baltimore. After losing to the Jets last week, the Browns were shut out and trailed by double digits in the first 30 minutes against the Ravens.
A loss threatened to drop Cleveland all the way to last in the AFC North. Instead, they rattled off 13 unanswered to climb to 4-2 and wrestle back the first-place spot they owned a couple of weeks ago.
It wasn't the prettiest game. Cleveland finished with an unimpressive 235 yards of offense, but Baltimore was almost exactly as ineffective with 237 yards of its own. The Browns' run defense, which was carved up by the Jets' Braelon Allen last week, managed to hold Derrick Henry to a season-low 58 rushing yards.
Somehow, the Titans aren't winless
Indianapolis had twice as many yards (399 to 186) and first downs (24 to 11) on Sunday, but it was Tennessee that came away with a 26-20 win in the end. That upset was mostly thanks to the Titans' defense, which made life miserable for Colts quarterback Daniel Jones.
Jones was sacked six times and threw two interceptions. Tennessee also forced a Jonathan Taylor fumble on the first play of the second half and got two fourth-down stops late to preserve the victory. The Titans also scored a touchdown on a blocked punt return to take the lead for the first time in the fourth quarter.
Fixing the anemic offense led by Cam Ward is priority No. 1 for the Titans, but their defense is a reason for optimism.
Bernard is a much-needed lifeline for Rodgers
The Steelers' offense caught fire in recent weeks but struggled to get going against the Buccaneers in Week 6. Pittsburgh needed a 52-yard field goal as time expired in the second quarter to avoid a first-half shutout and didn't score its first touchdown until the fourth quarter.
The saving grace for Pittsburgh was Germie Bernard. The second-round rookie receiver caught 11 of his 12 targets for 87 yards, including a 6-yard TD in overtime that proved to be the game-winner.
The Steelers have seen inconsistent play out of several playmakers - DK Metcalf included - so that kind of efficiency and reliability out of Bernard was a welcome change for Aaron Rodgers.
Banged-up Eagles offense doesn't have enough firepower
Philadelphia wasn't exactly stringing together great performances before a wave of injuries left the offense unrecognizable. With Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, Tank Bigsby, and Will Shipley out of action, things managed to get worse for the Eagles on Sunday against the Carolina Panthers.
While Tanner McKee was able to lead the team down the field on a pair of touchdown drives, Carolina forced Philadelphia to go three-and-out five times. The Eagles' longest gain of the game was a 22-yard defensive pass interference penalty on the Panthers. Philadelphia's Braden Mann punted eight times, tied for his most in a game since joining the club in 2023.
The Eagles are about to face three consecutive NFC East teams, beginning with the Cowboys next week on Monday night. Those lackluster opponents could be just what the doctor ordered for Philadelphia. Then again, it could be the slate that nails the Eagles' coffin shut before the season's second half even arrives.
London showdown
Stroud has Texans looking dangerous again
For the last couple of years, Houston's defense has led the way while the team has waited for C.J. Stroud to rediscover his rookie form. But it was the opposite story for the Texans in their 34-31 win against the Jaguars in London.
Neither the Texans nor the Jaguars could get many defensive stops in a game that turned into a shootout between Stroud and Trevor Lawrence. The former finished with 312 passing yards and three touchdowns against a Jacksonville secondary that allowed only four passing TDs in its first five games. While Stroud threw his first interception of the season in the fourth quarter, he made up for that mistake by leading the Texans into field-goal range for a 49-yard game-winner.
If the 2-4 Texans get more performances like that from Stroud, they'll quickly find themselves in the playoff mix despite their 0-4 start to the season.
Hunter becoming the player the Jaguars envisioned
When Jacksonville traded a haul of draft picks for the right to draft Travis Hunter with the second overall pick in 2025, the idea was that he'd be a game-changer on both sides of the ball. While there were flashes of his athleticism in his rookie season, his potential impact has never been as apparent and cohesive as it was Sunday in London.
Hunter, who has emerged as the Jaguars' top cover corner this year, was sprinkled in for nine offensive snaps against the Texans. He turned that into four receptions for 59 yards, including a 7-yard fourth-quarter touchdown. Later that quarter, Hunter erased a scoring opportunity for Houston by snagging an interception in the end zone.
Adam Stites is a contributing writer for theScore.
